Zumbatomic, Zumbathon and more!

So much to share from this weekend!!!!

Friday night I was hit with a spur of the moment Zumba teaching opportunity.  A Zumba demo for a group of Girl Scouts!  The instructor who was supposed to do it got really sick and has to cancel and I was asked to step in.  Now, I taught daycare back in college and learned, quickly, that it was not for me.  So color me shocked to say this - I LOVED IT! I had such a great time with the girls.  We did a cumbia, a salsa, a merengue, a fun country song and a routine to Big and Chunky from Madagascar 2. 

Lesson of the night?  I WANT MY ZUMBATOMIC LICENSE.  I want to do that more often.  Watching those girls dance and the excitement on their faces when they got the move down just made my heart swell.  The way they wanted to show off their other dance moves and their tumbling afterwards was just perfectly sweet.  It's added to the To-Do list.  I will be Zumbatomic licensed.

After the party!

Saturday was the Zumbathon for the Wilson Arts Council.  2 hours of hot and sweaty Zumba, OUTSIDE.  First time I've done anything major outside like that and it was SUCH a different vibe. 

The sun on my skin.  The wind in my hair.  It felt incredible.

I was on cloud nine the whole time. Maybe it was being outside in full view of anyone who walked by, maybe it was dancing in front of all those new folks, maybe it was the praised heaped upon me by folks every time I was off the stage and maybe it was all of the above but I felt truly high on life.

Nothing can match that feeling.  Nothing.

Post Zumbathon I tried to just chill and relax on the couch but I was exhausted and jittery at the same time.

Matt and I went to go see Cabin in the Woods in the evening and it helped to distract me from the crash that I knew was coming.

I slept like the dead and got up today to start everything fresh and clean.  Since Easter my nutrition has been all over the place and it was time to start getting everything back in line.  Starting with a purge of the fridge and a major grocery run.  Then going to town on a remix of last weeks Crock Pot Cube Steak recipe.

Today I made what amounted to cube steak crock pot stew. 

• 2 pounds cube Steak
• 4 cans cream of potato soup
• 2 packets onion dip mix
• 1 half a bag of mini carrots
• 1 can no salt added corn
• 1 can no salt added peas
• 1 medium onion
• 1 lb red potatoes diced
• 2 cups sliced squash
• 1 can white northern beans

It turned out super tasty! Higher in WW points (12!!) but so filling that one serving was perfect for a meal.  I served it with Italian bread and it was the perfect pairing.

I bought fruits, veggies, meats and cheeses for the week and have planned out my meals for breakfast and lunch and most of the dinners this week.  This week I need to focus on cutting the carbs back out of my diet and on getting back on track with eating on a schedule. 

I'm going to get things straight this week! Eating on clean, all my Zumba workouts and 2 hours of weight lifting this week.  It's time to focus on building muscle again.  I need the muscle to boost my metabolism!

We'll see if I feel back on track by the end of the week.

The end of the saga...

Well, it's over.  The hard parts, at least.  As of today, I once again own my own vehicle.

Since the accident I've been really nervous about how I was going to get back in to my own car.  I'm in the process of cleaning up my credit from a number of bad decisions during college and I was scared I wouldn't qualify for a loan.

I had begun saving for a car about a year ago.  I knew the time would be coming that the Olds would need to be replaced but I was nowhere near ready to purchase.

Well, prayers really do get answered.  The below car fell in to my lap - for just about what I had saved up for a down payment.  TADA!

It's a 1996 Ford Taurus station wagon. It was well loved and maintained by a local lady who, pretty much literally, only drove it to church on Sunday.  It has a grand total of 50,371 miles on it.

She doesn't have a name yet, but it's certainly a she.  I can't wait to drive her more and get to know her better. 

It drives like a dream and looks pretty much like it came right off the car lot.  It's a blessing.

I am so relieved to be back in my own car.  It's such a freeing feeling to not have to depend on people for a ride to get to class or go to work.

I'm free! FREEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Pinterest Cooking Experiment 1

So the other day I found an intriguing recipe on Pinterest for Crockpot Cube Steak and Gravy. It looked tasty and like something quick and easy I could add to my crock pot rotation.

However, I don't like mushroom ANYTHING so I swapped out the cream of mushroom for cream of potato and added onions, potatoes and carrots to the crock pot.  Then I served it with crescent rolls and steamed broccoli.

I think it turned out awesome!!

And it made 8 servings at 9 WW points a piece. Not TERRIBLY diet friendly, but very doable! 

Like the original... doesn't look great, but YUM!

I loved how soft and tender the cube steak turned out and how much flavor the onions, carrots and potatoes held in.  I wanted to lick the plate clean the gravy was so darn good!!!

Pinterest Cooking Experiment 1? I'll give it an A.  Took something that looked yummy and made it mine and everyone in the house loved it.

Tone it up!

Zumba Toning is taking off here in Wilson and it feels awesome to be a part of that.  I'm loving the added intensity and the focus on strength and control.  It feels empowering.

On top of Toning, I'm working on adding in some more fitness elements in to our usual classes.  Tonight we tried out a new fitness routine to Booty Wurk by T-Pain.  We did it in both classes tonight and YEOWCH! My thighs, lower abs and obliques are screaming.  Really excited about playing with that and Imma Be to really kill the muscles on non-Toning days. 

We also started doing Don Omar's Taboo. Which is killer too! I'm hoping to add in a new cha-cha this week too.  So much exciting stuff on the Zumba front this week.  It's a good escape from all the drama of the car accident.

Lent reflections.

Happy Easter. Happy Belated Passover.  Happy Sunday. 

Today is the end of my experiment to see if I could give up bread for Lent and I was, shockingly, successful. What did I learn about myself in the process?

That I have far more self control than I give myself credit for.
That food is not the answer to any of my problems. 
That some people really don't take well to making major diet changes 'made around a religious holiday.
That I really can do anything I want if I put my mind to it.

I turned down rolls and bread sticks and biscuits and stuffing and croutons and pizza and sandwiches.  I agonized over watching my best friends devour a loaf of home made garlic cheese bread. I gritted my teeth and turned away free bread with my meals almost every time we went out to eat. 

It was harder than I expected it to be... at first... about halfway through I stopped craving those go to foods.  The warm, tasty allure of bread just wasn't gnawing at me the way it once did.

Until my car accident.  When I finally got home the night of the accident I wanted nothing more than to devour a pizza and cry myself to sleep.  I wanted to be lost in the tasty warm bread smothered in sauce and cheese and dipped in garlic sauce.  I wanted to smell the fresh Italian seasonings and the warm delicious dough. 

It was remarkable just how much I craved those things in those moments of fear and doubt.  It was even more amazing that I was able to stay inside my mind enough and not give in.  I cried, a screamed, I panicked, I clung to Marshall and Chip and Matt and totally ate Girl Scout Cookies for dinner but I didn't give in and ruin my lenten promise so close to Easter.

Today I woke up to delicious waffles and fruit for breakfast.  We were going to do biscuits and eggs but we got lazy and forgot to go to the store. 

For lunch I had a delicious plate of ham, broccoli, lima beans, mashed potatoes, mashed sweet potatoes and 3 bean salad and I went back for seconds on all the veggies. I ate 3 delicious rolls too.  With butter.  They were heavenly. 

Shortly I will be indulging in pizza and I cannot tell you how much I'm looking forward to it.  Tomorrow I'll go back to eating bread normally, sparingly, and infrequently. 

I honestly felt better without all the processed white stuff in my diet.  I still got some of it from potatoes but taking the other major source away I definitely feel my nutrition was better over all so I think the bread stays away for the most part.

The week that sucked and yet didn't suck.

So let's start with the most important thing - I was in a car accident that caused the very noble death of my dear 1993 Oldsmobile 98.  Onslow the Oldsmobile died protecting me in a 5 car collision on I-440 in Raleigh.  I was coming home from a large meeting and a combination of rain, congestion and bad luck caused the accident and I'm just lucky I walked away from it.  I've got a sore shoulder and a handful of small bruises from my seat belt. 

What's left of my poor,  beloved, steed.

I had a major panic attack when I saw this for the first time in daylight the day after the accident.  The fact that i wasn't injured more than I was is... unbelievable. I was touched by an angel.

I probably won't be saying that in a few weeks once the bills start rolling in from the driver I hit. Plus there's that nasty business in that I need to get another car for myself.  So stressed about the whole thing.

Aside from the emotional wreckage left behind by feeling that I probably should have died this week really has been pretty good.

My big presentation at work went really well.  I've gotten a TON accomplished. 

Zumba has been AMAZING this week.  We finally added Toning in to our rotation and our first class was Thursday night.  It was SO AWESOME.

I also taught my first class at a new gym on Thursday night and that was fantastic as well. 

I'm really feeling strong and proud of where I am and what I'm accomplishing, personally and professionally.
I'm starting to put more effort in to my BeachBody business and the challenge groups I'm developing.  I'm really excited to see the changes in my team members.

Tomorrow is a Zumba marathon.  Class from 9:30-10:30, Toning from 10:30-11, and a Zumbathon from 2-5. I can't wait!

I'm also stoked for weigh in this week.  Ready to see the weight drop closer to the 300 mark! I know I can do it this month!